West Virginia, 1997

Cold in West Virginia, May 23, 1997

May 23, 1997 · NWS RLX · 18 events in 18 counties and zones

Sunrise temperatures were in the 30s. The 35 degrees at Parkersburg and the 30 degrees at Elkins were records for the date.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 15 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.

  • Tornadoes
  • Tropical storms and surge
  • Floods
  • Wind
  • Hail
  • Winter weather
  • Heat and drought
  • Cold
  • Fire, smoke and dust
  • Marine and coastal
  • Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
18

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS RLX wrote it up.

Sunrise temperatures were in the 30s. The 35 degrees at Parkersburg and the 30 degrees at Elkins were records for the date. The 30 degrees at Elkins was also the coldest in the lower 48 states for this particular morning. Scattered frost was noted in rural and mountainous areas.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

18 cold/wind chill. Local standard time, as filed.

Cold/Wind Chill, Jackson

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Jackson forecast zone
Coordinates
38.835, -81.675 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Wood

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Wood forecast zone
Coordinates
39.211, -81.515 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Pleasants

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Pleasants forecast zone
Coordinates
39.371, -81.161 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Tyler

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Tyler forecast zone
Coordinates
39.465, -80.885 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Roane

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Roane forecast zone
Coordinates
38.714, -81.348 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Wirt

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Wirt forecast zone
Coordinates
39.022, -81.379 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Calhoun

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Calhoun forecast zone
Coordinates
38.845, -81.118 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Ritchie

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Ritchie forecast zone
Coordinates
39.178, -81.063 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Doddridge

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Doddridge forecast zone
Coordinates
39.269, -80.707 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Braxton

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Braxton forecast zone
Coordinates
38.700, -80.719 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Gilmer

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Gilmer forecast zone
Coordinates
38.924, -80.857 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Lewis

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Lewis forecast zone
Coordinates
38.996, -80.502 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Harrison

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Harrison forecast zone
Coordinates
39.284, -80.380 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Webster

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Webster forecast zone

Cold/Wind Chill, Upshur

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Upshur forecast zone
Coordinates
38.898, -80.233 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Barbour

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Barbour forecast zone
Coordinates
39.133, -80.003 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Cold/Wind Chill, Pocahontas

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Pocahontas forecast zone

Cold/Wind Chill, Randolph

When
May 23, 6:00 AM EST
Where
Randolph forecast zone

What these are

Cold/Wind Chill
Cold or wind chill below warning criteria that caused deaths, injuries or damage.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in West Virginia in 1997Every state in 1997This day in weather historyWarnings in West Virginia, May 1997

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5598316, 5598317, 5598318, 5598319, 5598320, 5598321, 5598322, 5598323, 5598324, 5598325, 5598326, 5598327, 5598328, 5598329, 5598330, 5598331, 5598422, 5598423.